Saturday, October 18, 2017, 1:01 am
Gobi Hotel
…..
"I think that's about it." Kent said as he tossed his notebook on the coffee table.
Amia hoped that was it. Her eyes felt incredibly heavy and dry. She needed to sleep but Ira wouldn't let her. Many smaller companies were looking at the newly minted Hato-Uri conglomerate to invest in them and would require a yes or no answer soon. Of course, they could have gone through the details at a more reasonable hour but it was quickly becoming apparent that Ira was a workaholic. Or a masochist. Amia rubbed her right eye with the back of her hand and tried to stifle a yawn. At least Ira had let her borrow one of his shirts to wear instead of making her stay in her uncomfortable dress.
"It looks like the young one over here is getting sleepy, Ira." Kent snickered. "You should let her rest."
"N-no! I'm fine, really" She said, furiously shaking her head.
She didn't want Ira to think she was a slacker, especially after seeing her kiss George. If she had the energy to kiss, she had the energy to work. She glanced at Ira leaning against the window sill, dark eyes glued to his tablet.
"Will you bring up some coffee? I believe there is a twenty-four-hour café just down the block." Ira said without looking up and Kent rolled his eyes.
"Suuure...coffee."
When the hotel suite's room closed behind him, Ira finally looked up at her. His dark eyes were so intense, so familiar, that she couldn't keep his gaze. Instead, she began fiddling with a loose thread on the edge of her borrowed black v-neck.
"What is your relationship with Sabaku?" He asked, his tone tense. Amia shivered slightly and bit her bottom. Ira always spoke gently to her.
"He...he is to be my...my fiance." Amia said, trying to stamp down the guilt and revulsion that bubbled up with the admission.
"Fiance?"
"Yes." She confirmed again with a slow nod of her head. "When the paperwork is approved."
Ira let out a long even breath through his nose and walked over to where she sat on the couch.
"Does my brother know?" He asked and Amia looked up from her lap in surprise.
"W-what?"
"Sylas. Have you told him?" He reiterated as he crossed his arms over his chest.
Amia pushed some of her hair behind her ear but didn't look away this time.
"There is nothing to tell." She said. "We aren't together."
Ira scoffed at her statement.
"Could have fooled me."
Amia blushed as her counterpart sat down next to her. Had they really been that obvious that Ira had picked up on what they were doing? If Ira knew, who else did? She pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her face in them. Even though she wanted to feel ashamed for her irresponsible actions, she couldn't. What she and Sylas had shared over the last couple of months was special. What made her sad was knowing that it all had to end. To her surprise, Ira wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her curled body into his side. At first, her heartbeat quickened but eventually slowed as a warm silence wrapped around them.
"Sylas is very important to me." Ira said and Amia breathed a sigh of relief as his tone had finally returned to the gentle one she was used to. "He is selfish, obstinate, and relentless. He has always been a brat and I'm certain that will not change no matter how old he gets."
Amia giggled sleepily at Ira's words which all rang true. Sylas was indeed a brat. Ira poked her gently in the middle of her forehead.
"No laughing." He teased. "If I recall, Aviva is the exact same way. Such is the curse of being a younger sibling."
Ira's fingers absently threaded themselves through her hair, massaging her scalp and making her eyelids grow heavy.
"Since we have returned to New York, I've seen him smile more often. Laugh a little easier. Focus a little harder. It's a change that could only be attributed to a positive influence. Sylas doesn't change easily but you are having an impact on him.
Listening to Ira speak felt far away, like a dream she couldn't quite understand. Involuntarily her shoulders relaxed and her eyes finally closed. The day's events had finally caught up with her body and all she could do was sink further into Ira's warmth. If she just rested her eyes for a moment that might give her enough energy to resume working when Kent returned. She sighed contentedly. Just for a moment. Only a moment. Quickly she descended into the comforting embrace of sleep, Ira's voice a low incomprehensible hum in the background of her mind...
"Right now, this is the happiest I have seen Sylas in a long time. I would do anything to make sure he stayed happy." He mumbled, pressing his nose against her temple for the briefest of moments.
"I would even give him you."
"You are getting soft, Uri." Kent smirked from the suite doorway, a tray of paper coffee cups in his possession.
"Perhaps." The man replied simply.
He picked up the unconscious Hato in his arms, surprised when her small hand clutched the front of his shirt when he stood up. He looked down at the sleeping woman he carried into the bedroom of his suite. Her long black lashes kissed her pale cheeks and for the first time since they had arrived in Dallas, she looked at ease. As he laid her down on the large bed, she shivered from the loss of his body warmth. Her once relaxed brow furrowed and tears pricked the corners of her eyes. Ira wiped the moisture away with his thumb and she relaxed once again. The small woman let out a shaky breath as she settled back down.
"Sylas." she whispered faintly making Ira pause from covering her with the duvet. "Sylas... I'm sorry..."
….
Saturday, October 18, 2017, 7:05am
Hato Enterprise
….
Sylas and Ezra sat side by side as they regarded the shareholders of Hato Enterprise. The men and women grumbled amongst themselves at being drawn out of bed so early in the morning without much notice. They had their own lavish plans to attend to and none of them included being at the beck and call of the brats of the Hato and Uri families. Sylas could care less what they thought.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
He glanced down at his watch as the last shareholder took their seat. Amia and Ira would be returning in a few hours. Despite her cold shoulder the last time she was here, he was still anxious to see her again. To touch her again. This time he was not letting her get away. As the door to the conference room closed, he and Ezra stood up and the shareholders muted their grumblings. A hush fell over the room.
"Thank you all for joining us on such short notice." Ezra said stiffly. "We apologize for the inconvenience."
"Is there an emergency Ezra? I in no way mean to offend you but this is odd since Arlo is the one who usually calls these meetings." An older woman asked as she warily eyed Sylas. Everyone knew that he wasn't supposed to be there.
"This is a matter that has been brought to my attention by our new partner." Ezra said with a slight wave of his hand to Sylas to show his support of his presence in the room. The brunette stiffly sat in his seat, allowing Sylas to have the floor.
"There is a traitor among you." Sylas said coolly and the occupants in the room narrowed their eyes at him.
As far as they could see he was the one that did not belong. The woman who had addressed Ezra earlier folded her arms over her chest.
"I believe that I speak for everyone here that we are all loyal to this company Uri. Some of us have seen its leader change several times. From generation to generation, through it all we have stood by this company." She said as politely as she could but there was an edge to her tone. "While we have...agreed to Arlo's decision to merge with the Uri you have not been here long enough to question our loyalty."
Around the room, the shareholders muttered to themselves. They shifted to sit a little taller in their seats, bolstered by the older woman's words. Sylas was unbothered by this reaction. It was to be expected that they react in such a way to his accusation.
"You are correct. I have not been amongst you for long. However, loyalty is rather scare at the moment." Sylas replied blandly. "I highly doubt that any of you actually know the definition of loyalty when money is waved under your nose."
"Ezra," a small man at the end of the table piped up. "We are all very busy people. I would have thought that you respected our time more than to allow an interloper into our midst and make wild accusations-"
Ezra held up his hand and the man demurred slightly into silence.
"I will not keep you here long. You have an easy decision to make. In front of you is some information that you may find interesting."
The shareholders looked down at the innocuous manila envelopes in front of them. Sylas smirked as the members muttered to each other, unsure of whether to take the bait or not. Eventually, the sound of papers rustling filled the room. He watched with amusement as eyes widened and faces turned red. He half expected them to explode but the Hato handled things differently. Having the threat of their dirty laundry right there in front of them caused them to close into themselves. He could see the gears whirring in their heads as they tried to predict his next move so that they could counter him. Unfortunately, they wouldn't have that option today.
"Many of you have families I assume you care about. Legacies that, up to this point, have remained clean.
I assume you would like to keep it that way." Sylas said, making eye contact with everyone in the room. The malice behind their eyes only further served to fuel his confidence.
"You have only two options. Either sell your shares to us and leave without consequence or you can refuse. If you choose to refuse, this information will go public. Some of you have assets that can be seized once this information gets out. Some of you have cases currently tied up in courts that will surely only aid your opponents. Others will likely have people that are close to them arrested..."
"Ezra!" The woman from earlier shouted as she stood up from her seat, her face drained of all its color.
"You cannot allow something like this to happen. Using these kinds of threats is blackmail, that is just as illegal as anything you might have pinned on us. If Arlo heard about this-"
"If my Uncle handled this you would not have the option to leave quietly." Ezra replied, unfazed by her words.
Sylas smirked as the woman sank heavily into her seat and stared lifelessly at the pandora's box in front of her. He crossed his arms over his chest and regarded the other shocked faces in the room.
"So what will it be?" He said and what happened next surprised even him.
The Hato shareholders did in fact explode. Papers were thrown across the table as people older than his father began to point fingers at each other, accusing their neighbors of leaking the crimes the manila envelopes held. It was a rather unfortunate scene since many of the secrets they had unearthed were of the shareholders backstabbing each other.
With Sean and Noah's assistance, they were able to find things that these people would never want to see the light of day. The Hato always looked so perfect on the outside but underneath the shiny veneer, many of them were rotten. Sylas and Ezra did nothing to quell the civil dispute in front of them. In the end, they knew that they would get what they wanted. The shareholders truly only had one option. Submission. It didn't matter how loudly they fought amongst each other or how much they tried to persuade them to reconsider their terms. In the end they would all yield and he would be one step closer to getting what was his. The thought of Amia at his side once more allowed him the patience he needed to get through the rest of the meeting.
…..
Saturday, October 18, 2017, 5:15pm
New York City International Airport
…..
"Sylas I have returned to you!" Ira called out as soon as they exited their boarding terminal.
Amia felt her heart nearly leap out of her chest as he looked up from his cell phone at them. He placed his phone in his pocket and began to walk quickly in their direction. Inwardly she started to panic.
"Have you missed us?" Ira asked when Sylas had gotten close enough to them.
"Hato." He said, completely ignoring his brother's question as he looked her up and down.
"That answers that question." Ira mumbled under his breath and Amia's lips twitched with amusement.
"S-Sylas." Amia greeted nervously, his name felt warm on her tongue and she noticed a familiar flash of longing in his eyes when she said it.
She stood there frozen in place by his gaze, unsure of what to do or say. Part of her itched to wrap her arms around his waist while a larger faction wanted nothing more than to run away. She didn't have a chance to decide what to do since a body slammed into her side, nearly toppling her over.
"Amia! You're back!" Aviva said as she squeezed Amia tightly.
"Aviva!" Amia gasped as she tried to steady herself from the surprise attack.
Behind Aviva, she saw Ezra trying to weave through the crowd to get to them. Aviva must have ditched him in her excitement.
"I'm so glad that you're back. Never leave me with Ezra and Father again!" She pouted as she released Amia from a bone-crushing hug.
Amia blushed at her sister's public display of affection but smiled nonetheless. Ira placed a heavy hand on her head, causing her to turn her attention to the Uri brothers. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Sylas tense up at the gesture.
"We will see you Monday." He said and Amia nodded.
Ira then walked away with a rather reluctant Sylas in tow. Amia watched them leave as well with a heavy feeling in her heart.
"Amia." Ezra said as he took her bags from her. "Uncle is expecting your call once we get in the car."
"Oh?"
She was taken aback by the request. Sure this was her first business trip away but she never expected her father to worry about her. It would have made her happy to know he cared if it wasn't for that nagging suspicion in the back of her mind. She glanced at Aviva prattling on as they made their way through the airport and her fears grew.
"It's about George isn't it?" she whispered to Ezra and her cousin nodded.
George. Of course. She had a duty to fulfill and her father would ensure that she met his expectation.
…..
Monday, October 20, 2017, 5:24am
Hato Enterprise
…..
Amia sighed as she paused outside the door to her office. Her hand rested on the door knob but she couldn't bring herself to open it. Her legs felt like they were made of cement and her heart refused to stop beating erratically. What should she say when she saw him? 'Good morning, I'm getting married?' That didn't sound good at all. She pressed her forehead against the cold wooden door and squeezed her eyes closed.
"What are you doing, Hato?" A smooth voice said from behind her, their warm breath caressing the back of her neck.
Amia jumped in surprise and spun around. Sylas smirked at her and took a step closer. Amia pressed her back against the door to get space between them but it only made him come closer. Her hand frantically felt around on the wood for the doorknob.
"We need to talk." He said as he reached behind her and opened the door with ease.
Amia swallowed thickly as he led her into their empty office, cut on the lights, and locked the door behind them. She stood awkwardly in the middle of the room.
"You have been avoiding me since the signing." He said blankly and Amia stared down at the floor.
"Would you like to tell me why?"
Amia bit her bottom lip. The band-aid had to come off at some point. Soon her father and George would want to go public to make their relationship official. It would be better if Sylas heard the news from her than from a tabloid or by word of mouth.
"We can't do the things we were doing before." She said, keeping her voice as even as she could.
"What things?" Sylas asked as he stepped closer and placed a hand on her cheek to make her look up at him. She unconsciously leaned into the warmth of his palm.
"Working? Talking? Drinking? Kissing? Fucking? I'm afraid you will have to be more specific."
"All of it." She answered softly. "Sylas, we can't do this anymore."
"What is this?"
Amia felt her eyes burn with unshed tears as his thumb caressed her cheek. She took a step back from him.
"You can't touch me anymore. Or kiss me. Or sleep with...me." She said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I already know about the marriage contract." He interrupted as though he were telling her about the weather.
How long had he known? How did he even find out? Amia looked up at him with wide eyes as he shoved his hands into his pockets. He was looking away from her with a furrowed brow as though it pained him to say the words out loud. Amia wanted nothing more than reach out and smooth the lines on his face away but kept her feet firmly planted. She squared her shoulders back and tried to look more confident than she felt.
"Yes. George and I have agreed to get married." She said and Sylas' eyes flared with anger.
"Agreed? Agreed? You are being used as a pawn and you call that an agreement? You are just going to agree to be bartered off?"
Amia crossed her arms over her chest at his accusation, her own temper and frustration rising with his.
"I know what I am getting myself into. George is kind and has the potential to be a good partner. Unlike you, he could actually come to care about me one day!"
"You don't think I care about you?" Sylas asked, his voice dangerously low and eyes narrowed.
Amia stood her ground, unintimidated by the way he towered above her. She knew that Sylas cared for her on some level but she had to end this. It would only hurt more the longer they stood on uncertain ground. Sylas may be upset with her now but he could easily replace her. The thought of him caring for another woman pierced through her, making her grimace outwardly. She was replaceable.
Replaceable.
"I am replaceable. You are only interested in sleeping with me. That is all you want. I'm sure one of your subordinates will be more than happy to take my place in your-"
Sylas cut her off by firmly pressing his lips against hers and tangling his fingers in her hair. As his mouth moved against hers, she could feel all of his greed and anger vibrating through her. Underneath was an edge of need and hurt that he was trying to cover up but she could feel it as well. It was all too much. She placed her hands on his chest and pushed him away slightly. His hands were still tangled in her hair as he looked down at her.
"Do not assume that you know what I want. You are not replaceable to me."
"Then what do you want?" she countered as she clutched the front of his shirt. Her heart pounding in anticipation of what he might say. "What am I to you?"
"I want what is mine. You are mine."